FADE IN:

A small community on the outskirts of London in the late 1800s.
People are going about their daily activities.  There is one
house that is set apart a little bit from the rest of the
houses.


INT. WIZARD HOUSE - DAY

It's small and neat.  One thing that is remarkable is a full
bookshelf against one wall.

DAVID WOLFE bursts through the door.  He's obviously worried.
He grabs a book from the shelf and sits at his writing table.
He opens the book to a blank page at the back and prepares to go
to work with pen and ink.

He draws a complex diagram on the blank page, being careful not
to smear the ink.  Once the diagram is finished, he takes a
small knife and pricks a finger tip.  He squeezes a drop of
blood into the ink bottle.

He switches to a very fine-nib pen and a magnifying glass.  He
draws a circle around the diagram, but it's not a simple circle.
He's writing a string of words all around the diagram.  Without
the magnifying glass, it just looks like a ragged circle.

When he finishes the circle he caps the ink, but he doesn't even
bother putting away his writing stuff.  He blows on the page to
make sure the ink is dry.

When he's satisfied, he closes the book and rushes out of the
house.


EXT./INT. BOOKSELLER - DAY

It's later in the day.  It took a little time for Wolfe to reach
the shop in London.  He looks around quickly to see if he's
being followed before ducking into the book shop.  He's no
longer holding the book in his hand.  He goes into the shop.

It's a small shop that sells a variety of new and used books.
The SHOPKEEPER, an older man, is sitting on a stool, reading a
book.  There are no other people in the shop.  The shopkeeper
looks up when Wolfe enters.

                        SHOPKEEPER
          Good day, sir.  How may I help you?

                        WOLFE
          I'm just browsing, thank you.

                        SHOPKEEPER
          We've just received volume 31 of Routledge's
          Pocket Library, if you're interested.

                        WOLFE
          No, thank you.  I'm just going to look
          through your used books.

                        SHOPKEEPER
          Very well.  Let me know if you require any
          assistance.

                        WOLFE
          Of course.

He heads for the shelves away from the shopkeeper.  While
pretending to study the titles, he pulls his book out from under
his coat.  He hides the book behind the ones on a shelf.  He
stalls a little longer before heading back to the entrance.

                        SHOPKEEPER
          Find anything you like, sir?

                        WOLFE
          Not today, thank you.

He continues out the door.  The shopkeeper calls after Wolfe.

                        SHOPKEEPER
          Come again.

He returns to his book.


INT. WIZARD HOUSE - NIGHT

Wolfe enters his house.  He shrugs off his coat and tosses it
out of the way and unbuttons his collar.  He sweeps an area rug
out of the way to clear a large space on the floor.  He takes
his ink bottle and a brush and kneels on the floor.

He carefully duplicates the diagram that he had drawn in the
book onto the floor...all except the outer circle of writing.
He lights and places candles around the diagram before kneeling
in the center of it.

He starts speaking in a low and unintelligible voice.  He is
reciting a Latin incantation.  As he recites, he fades from view
until he is no longer there.

Soon, the roar of voices can be heard from outside the house.
The door is kicked open and a MOB streams into the house.  They
brandish various weapons and verbally whip each other into a
frenzy.  The impromptu mob LEADER shouts above the rest.

                        LEADER
          Come out, Wolfe!

They spread out and quickly determine that Wolfe is not there.

                        LEADER
          Burn it!

The mob pulls the books and papers from the shelves and dumps
them on the diagram.  The leader lights the pile; the mob
cheers.

                        LEADER
          Everyone out!


EXT. WIZARD HOUSE - CONTINUOUS

The mob streams out of the house as the flames take hold.  They
cheer at first, but eventually they just watch the house burn in
silence.


INT. BOOKSELLER - CONTINUOUS

A little bit of light smoke or mist is sucked behind the used
books that are hiding Wolfe's book.  Once the mist is gone, all
is quiet and still.


FADE OUT.


FADE IN:

A present day used book store somewhere in America.  The CLERK,
a young woman, is sorting some books on the shelves.  SAM
BARRETT enters the store.  He's in his late 30s or early 40s.

                        CLERK
          Hi.

                        BARRETT
          Hi.

                        CLERK
          Can I help you with something?

                        BARRETT
          No, I just thought I'd take a look and see
          if anything catches my eye.

                        CLERK
          Okay.  Let me know if you need help.

                        BARRETT
          Thanks.

The clerk returns to her sorting.  Barrett heads back to some
shelves labeled "CLASSIC."  What that really means is old
hardcover books that are not valuable enough to lock in a case.

Something does indeed catch Barrett's eye.  It's an eleven
volume set of encyclopedias.  They stand out because the leather
spines are highly decorated.  Barrett pulls one from the shelf
to inspect it.  He exclaims quietly, to himself.

                        BARRETT
          Wow...

It's the 1921 edition of Collier's New Encyclopedia.  Barrett
peruses a few of the volumes before deciding to buy the set.  He
grabs a few of them and takes them to the counter.  The clerk
sees him.

                        CLERK
          Let me help you with that.

                        BARRETT
          Thanks.

Between the two of them, they get the set to the counter.

                        CLERK
          I'll get a box for them.

She disappears into the back room and returns with an
appropriate box.  Barrett continues to admire the books as she puts
them in the box.

                        BARRETT
          They're beautiful.  I don't think I've ever
          seen anything quite like them.

The clerk indicates a glass display case.

                        CLERK
          There's some more old books in there.

Barrett goes to look.  There's an assortment of books: some old,
some new, some labeled "FIRST EDITION."  He turns to the clerk.

                        BARRETT
          May I see some of them?

                        CLERK
          Sure.

She gets the key and unlocks the case.  He looks at some of the
books, eventually coming to an old volume.  The title is
"HISTORIES OF THE WIZARDS."

Barrett turns some of the pages carefully.  It appears to be a
mix of stories, much of it in English.  But there are also many
passages in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, and the occasional diagram
or illustration.

He closes the book and looks at it all over.  He hands it to the
clerk.

                        BARRETT
          I'll take this too.

                        CLERK
          I'll put it in the box.

She leaves to do just that.  Barrett looks at a few more books,
but nothing else is interesting enough.  He returns to the
counter and holds out a credit card.

                        BARRETT
          That'll do it.

The clerk takes the card and begins processing.


INT. BARRETT HOME - DAY

It looks spacious without being too large.  Barrett isn't
concerned with fancy furniture and a complex home entertainment
system.

The front door opens and Barrett drops his keys on the table by
the door.  He then picks up the box of books from the porch and
enters the house, pulling the door closed with his foot.  He
carries the box


IN THE LIBRARY

Barrett has two bedrooms, but he's converted one of them to a
library.  This is what's important to him.  All four walls are
covered with shelves full of books.  He sets the box on the
floor, pulls out the history book, and leaves.


IN THE LIVING ROOM

Barrett sits on the couch to look at the book.  He kicks off his
shoes so he can swing his legs up onto the couch.

He flips randomly through the book, reading bits and pieces.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          Hunc igitur terrorem animi, tenebrasque
          necessest non radii solis, neque lucida tela
          diei discutiant, sed naturae species
          ratioque.

He flips some more and stops.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          The most striking case of levitation which I
          have witnessed has been with Mr. Home.  On
          three separate occasions have I seen him
          raised completely from the floor of the
          room.

He turns closer to the back of the book.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          Not even their alliances are made without
          shedding of blood: the partners in the
          compact wound themselves, and when the blood
          gushes out they mingle the stream and taste
          of it when it is mixed.

He finally turns to the back of the book.  There's the hand-
drawn diagram in the circle.  He looks at for a moment, then he
squints and looks more closely.  He sets the book on the coffee
table and leaves the room.

He returns shortly with a magnifying glass, paper, and pen.

The transcription is time consuming.  He reads a few words by
carefully cradling the book in one hand and holding the
magnifying glass in the other.  Then he puts the magnifying
glass down, picks up the pen, and writes what he read.


LATER

Eventually, he gets the entire circle transcribed onto the
paper.  He starts to read from the paper.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          Sed antequam ad conflictum ueniamus, de cibo
          illo, qui coelestis ab illis dicebatur,
          quali arte conficiebatur nescientibus
          demonstrare eurabo.  Congregabantur si
          quidem certis noctibus in domo denominata,
          singuli...

Barrett begins to fade out, just like Wolfe did.  He doesn't
notice any difference, though, so he keeps reading.  He also
doesn't notice the light mist emanating from the book.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          ...lucernas tenentes in manibus, ad instar
          letaniae demonum nomina declamabant, donec
          subito Daemonem in similitudine cuiuslibet
          bestiolae inter eos uiderent descendere.
          Qui statim, ut uisibilis ille uidebatur
          uisio,...

He continues to fade as he reads, oblivious of what is happening
to him.  His voice fades with him.  The book continues to
produce a mist that's heavier now.

                        BARRETT
                 (reading)
          ...omnibus extinctis luminaribus, quamprimum
          quisque poterat, mulierem, quae ad manum
          sibi ueniebat, ad abutendum arripiebat, sine
          peccati respectu, et utrum mater, aut soror,
          aut monacha haberetur, pro sanctitate et...

And poof, he's gone.  The mist that's hugging the floor wraps up
into the shape of a man.  Then the mist solidifies into Wolfe.
He's wearing the same outfit as when he faded away.  He looks
around to see that he's alone and notices the book.

He picks up the book, touches it to his forehead, kisses it,
then clutches it to his chest.


                                                   FADE TO BLACK.


                             The End